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Iran weighs gasoline rationing as fuel deficit widens

Iran's government is considering three proposals to curb gasoline consumption as war damage, import difficulties and a widening gap between domestic production and demand put growing pressure on fuel supplies. The options include imposing a daily cap on supplies to filling stations, tightening vehicle quotas and allowing additional gasoline to be sold at market rates, or transferring fuel allocations from vehicles to individuals and permitting citizens to trade them. No proposal has been approved, and the government has not announced any immediate change to subsidized gasoline prices. Esmail Saghab-Esfahani, a vice president and head of Iran's Strategic Energy Policy and Management Organization, outlined the three scenarios on state television and said the public would be informed before any decision was implemented. Under the first proposal, existing prices would remain unchanged, but filling stations nationwide would receive a combined 121 million liters ...

Oil’s geopolitical premium collides with weaker global economy

The global oil market has entered another period where geopolitics is setting the tone, while weaker demand and rising inventories are trying to pull prices back down. That tension between physical risk and economic reality is what now defines the market. After the June peace agreement between the United States and Iran, oil markets temporarily relaxed. Brent crude fell to around $69 per barrel on July 2, reflecting hopes that supply risks in the Gulf might ease and maritime flows could stabilize. But all this won't last long. Renewed attacks on tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz, along with lower crude shipments later in July, pushed Brent sharply higher. At one point, Brent reached $105 per barrel on July 23 before retreating again. Now it is trading near $87, while WTI, or Light crude, is hovering around $82. This once ...

Petrobras Discovers Hydrocarbons at 2,886 Meters in the Amazon Delta, Paving the Way for a New Oil Frontier

Morpho Well is Located 175 Kilometers Off the Coast of Amapá, but the Discovery Still Needs Evaluation Before Any Commercial Production Petrobras has identified the presence of hydrocarbons in the Amazon Delta Basin, in an area of ultra-deep waters considered strategic for the future of Brazilian production. The material was found during the drilling of the exploratory well Morpho, in block FZA-M-59, off the coast of Amapá. The announcement was made by the state-owned company on Friday, August 14, 2026. According to the official statement from Petrobras, the discovery was confirmed through electric profiles and indicators observed in the rocks crossed during drilling. Despite the significance of the result, the company still needs to determine whether the material found is predominantly oil, natural gas, or a combination of both. There have also been no estimates released regarding the size of the accumulation. Discovery Occurred ...

Military conflicts combine with climate constraints to impede navigation across the globe

Since early March a previously obscure waterway between Iran and Oman that very few people could name has become the subject of daily reporting around the world after Iran closed it as a response to the attack on Iran by the United States and Israel. The Strait of Hormuz, which remains closed to most ships, is now known around the world as the transit point for 20 percent of the world's oil and high percentages of key materials including fertilizers such as ammonia (23 percent), urea (34 percent) and phosphate (20 percent), helium (30 percent), and sulfur (24 percent), all of which are derived from or are co-products of oil or natural gas except phosphate. On the other side of the Arabian peninsula, a long-festering conflict between Ansar Allah (which controls part of Yemen) and Saudi Arabia has escalated. Not surprisingly, ...

The post-Hormuz era offers Africa a great opportunity

As the disruption of traffic in the Strait of Hormuz continues, African economies have taken a heavy hit. This is despite the fact that they possess vast energy and other resources. Four years ago, the Russia-Ukraine war had a similar impact. As we enter what I call the post-Hormuz era - a time in which the global system is no longer defined by a single chokepoint - Africa has the unique opportunity to reverse its fortunes and emerge from the periphery of world geopolitics. Instead of being a passive supplier of resources and a recipient of strategic decisions taken in other geographies, it can create its own geopolitical context. Here is how. WHAT AFRICAN STATES FEAR The first step in Africa's transformation is a collective push to overcome what I have termed thalassophobia: a historical tendency among African states to regard the sea ...

India readies big LPG output boost as Hormuz uncertainty lingers

India has directed its state companies and private refiners to prepare for a sharp increase in cooking gas production, seeking to bolster domestic supplies as the Iran war prolongs uncertainty over the Strait of Hormuz, the key waterway for about 90% of the country’s liquefied petroleum gas imports. Refiners and crude oil explorers have been ordered to “implement all technically and economically feasible measures” to maximize LPG output beyond current minimum producible levels, according to an Aug. 13 government notification. That includes exploring alternative uses of feedstocks, such as converting naphtha into LPG. India, which relies on imports for about two-thirds of its LPG consumption, has scrambled to secure enough cooking fuel since the US-Iran war disrupted traditional supply routes. Buyers have turned to the US and newer suppliers including Algeria following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Domestic refiners, ...

Oil climbs over $1 on tanker attacks

Crude oil futures climbed over $1 a barrel on Friday on tanker attacks and a lack of progress on a peace agreement between the Trump administration and Iran's leadership. Brent futures settled at $88.52 a barrel, up $1.45, or 1.67 percent. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures finished at $82.40, up $1.15, or 1.42 percent. Brent and WTI were on track for weekly gains of 6.0 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively. "We're getting a rally going into the weekend after new attacks on tankers and lack of progress on a cease-fire agreement," said Andrew Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates. A "day of reckoning" may come if traffic in the strait of Hormuz remains constrained, through which 20 percent of global supply can pass, Lipow said. "Crude oil prices might be $80 a barrel, but diesel prices are $180 a barrel ...

Tensions Spike Around Iran: What Carrier Deployments, Missing Pilots, and Oil Shock Fears Mean for Everyone

The Middle East is navigating another precarious chapter as regional rivalries, military posturing, and resource anxieties converge. Between heavy naval redeployments by the United States, fresh diplomatic feuds between Tehran and Doha over downed aircrews, persistent Israeli strikes, and the lingering threat to worldwide energy stockpiles, the stakes have rarely been higher. US NAVAL POWER: AIRCRAFT CARRIERS BOLSTER REGIONAL DETERRENCE In response to volatile exchanges and threats to commercial waterways, the United States has maintained an aggressive posture in the region, keeping carrier strike groups and specialized air assets positioned across US Central Command (CENTCOM) operational waters. The deployment of massive carrier battle groups serves multiple strategic objectives: Active Deterrence — demonstrating immediate retaliatory capability against state-sponsored strikes or proxy incursions; Maritime Escort and Freedom of Navigation — guarding vital transit chokepoints like the Bab el-Mandeb and the Strait of Hormuz against ...

The Battle Over North Sea Oil Is Heating Up Under Britain’s New PM

With a new Prime Minister in office, it is uncertain whether the United Kingdom will continue accelerating its green transition or backtrack on climate pledges to support fossil fuel development. Many have speculated that the new Labour Party PM Andy Burnham will back North Sea oil and gas projects. However, since taking power in 2024, the Labour Party has introduced a wide range of energy policies supporting renewable energy development and grid infrastructure updates, as well as restrictions on new oil and gas drilling. Before taking over as PM, energy experts speculated that Burnham would likely approve drilling projects at the Jackdaw gas field and Rosebank oil field off the coast of Scotland, alongside an expansion of 'tie-backs' which allow further drilling near existing fields. Jackdaw and Rosebank are in legal limbo because approvals from the previous Conservative government were overturned ...

April World Oil Production Drops Again

By Ovi The focus of this post is an overview of World oil production along with a more detailed review of the top 10 Non-OPEC oil producing countries. OPEC oil production is covered in a separate post. Below are a number of Crude plus Condensate (C + C) production charts, usually shortened to “oil”, for the oil producing countries. The charts are created from data provided by the EIA’s International Energy Statistics and are updated to April 2026. This is the latest and most detailed/complete World oil production information available. Information from other sources such as OPEC, IEA, STEO and country specific sites such as Brazil, Norway, Mexico, Argentina and China is also reported to provide an extra one or two months production preview beyond the EIA’s latest report. The World’s April oil production dropped by 1,026 kb/d to 75,281 kb/d due to ...

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